Here’s how much the war with Iran is expected to cost every day

Days after the start of the conflict with Iran, and with no clear timeline for its end, concerns are growing about how much Operation Epic Fury could ultimately cost American taxpayers.

The US Department of Defense has not provided an official estimate so far, and lawmakers have not yet been asked to approve any additional emergency funding for the military operation.

Lindsay Koshgarian, program director of the National Priorities Project at the Institute of Policy Studies, said the total cost remains uncertain because the situation is unpredictable. She also argued that the conflict is unnecessary and diverts resources from policies that could help improve affordability for people in the United States.

Koshgarian pointed out that the war in Iraq eventually cost nearly $3 trillion, suggesting that the financial impact of the current conflict could also become extremely large.

More than $890 million a day

The war is costing about $891.4 million per day, according to a think tank based in Washington, DC, that analyzed the information the Pentagon has shared about targets it struck and the assets involved in the operation.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies predicts that the cost will decrease as the US shifts to “less expensive munitions” and as the drones and missiles launched by Iran declines.

Biggest cost drivers

Air, naval and ground operations will be the biggest expenses, according to the CSIS analysis.

Air operations are expected to cost $30 million per day, and the price tag for daily naval operations is around $15 million. Meanwhile, ground operations will cost $1.6 million each day.

These are the daily costs of the most expensive assets:

Air assets:

• Tanker and cargo: $9 million
• Carrier air wing: $5 million
• Non-stealth fighter: $5 million
• Stealth fighter: $5 million

Naval assets:

• Aircraft carrier: $6 million
• Destroyer: $5 million

Ground assets:

• Artillery brigade: $1 million
• National Guard battalion: less than $1 million

How it compares with last summer’s Iran strikes

The US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities in June 2025, known as Operation Midnight Hammer, reportedly cost less than the first 100 hours of the military campaign that began when the United States launched attacks on Iran early Saturday morning. The earlier operation lasted for only about two and a half hours.

According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the first 100 hours of the current conflict have already cost around $3.7 billion. Meanwhile, the Costs of War project at Brown University estimated that last year’s strikes cost between $2.04 billion and $2.26 billion.

The Costs of War project regularly publishes research and analysis related to US military spending and overseas operations.